Former Minister Tummala Nageswara Rao Joins Congress, Resigns from BRS
Hyderabad, Sep 16: In a significant political development, former minister Tummala Nageswara Rao tendered his resignation from the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) on Saturday and officially embraced the Congress party. This notable move took place just before the commencement of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting in Hyderabad, where Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge extended a warm welcome to him.
The event saw the presence of key Congress leaders, including State Congress Chief A. Revanth Reddy, AICC In-Charge for Telangana, Manikrao Thakrey, and other prominent party figures.
Nageswara Rao’s decision to switch allegiance stemmed from his dissatisfaction with the BRS, primarily due to being denied a ticket from the Palair constituency for the upcoming Assembly elections. The BRS instead nominated Kandla Upender Reddy, who had previously been elected on a Congress ticket in 2018 but later defected to the BRS.
Nageswara Rao boasts a long-standing political career, having been associated with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) since its inception in the early 1980s. He has held ministerial positions in the cabinets of N.T. Rama Rao and Chandrababu Naidu during the undivided Andhra Pradesh era and subsequently served as a minister in Telangana’s first government.
A five-time Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) and a senior leader from Khammam district, Nageswara Rao joined the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (now BRS) in 2014 following the formation of the Telangana state. He held the portfolio of roads and buildings minister in Telangana’s first government under Chief Minister KCR.
Nageswara Rao’s political journey took an interesting turn when he was elected as an MLA on a TRS ticket from Palair in a 2016 by-election. However, in 2018, he faced defeat against Upender Reddy.
Meanwhile, Jitta Balakrishna Reddy and Yennam Srinivasa Reddy, who were recently suspended from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) due to alleged anti-party activities, also made the switch to the Congress party. They were formally admitted into the party by Congress MP Komatireddy Venkat Reddy.
